An Excerpt From...

The Drifter by
Kate Hoffmann

Charlie Templeton stood at the top of the world. Literally. He sucked in a deep breath from the oxygen mask covering his face. The air was thin at 28,740 feet and after climbing for nearly twelve hours, all he really wanted to do was lie down and sleep. But he knew the risks of taking just a moment or two of relaxation. Many climbers had died ascending Mount Everest, but the descent was even trickier.

Exhausted, his body depleted of energy reserves, cold, hungry and mentally numb, Charlie knew all the dangers. The thought of dying on the face of the world's tallest mountain had haunted his nightmares. But now that he was here, it didn't seem all that frightening. He closed his eyes and let his thoughts drift. Just a moment was all he needed.

Everest was the last on his list of seven summits. He'd attempted the climb twice in the past, but had been forced to stop because of weather. But when he'd stepped out his tent at midnight, ready for the final push to the top, he'd known today would be the day.

For an adventurer, there was no higher goal than bagging the seven summits—the tallest peak on each continent. He'd written about his quest for the adventure Web site Adrenaline and had done numerous speaking engagements at college campuses all over the U.S., all to fund his trips. He had a pair of lectures scheduled in just a few weeks at the university in his hometown of Boulder and he was banking on the fact that he'd arrive fresh off the top of Everest, ready to tell of his adventure.

But now that he'd accomplished his goal, Charlie was left to wonder what it all meant. He didn't feel the way he'd expected—elated, awestruck, satisfied, humbled. In truth, Charlie didn't feel anything.

He unsnapped his oxygen mask and pushed it aside, then shoved his goggles to the top of his head, taking in the view and waiting for the impact of the moment to hit him. It was all there, more stunning than he'd ever imagined it. Below him was the Rong-buck glacier and the North Col, and to the north horizon, the vast Tibetan plateau. He slowly turned, to the west and then the south, finishing with the most breathtaking view of all—the highest peaks of the Himalayas, jagged and snow-covered, jutting into the thin atmosphere to the east.

He closed his eyes and drew a deep breath. An image flashed in his brain and he gasped. A face from the past. Charlie brushed it aside. God, he must really be oxygen-deprived to think of her at a time like this. He hadn't spoken to Eve Keller in more than five years, not since the night before he departed for his first attempt at Everest.

Maybe that was it. He'd completed the circle and he was back to where he'd begun. Or was it something more? Charlie had learned to live his life without regrets. It wasn't easy, but he'd had to put aside relationships in order to focus on his ambitions. It hadn't seemed like a sacrifice at the time, but now that he'd come to the end of his quest, he had to wonder if it had all been worth it.

"Evie," he murmured. She'd been the one person who'd tempted him, the one relationship that might have changed the course of his life. Hell, if he'd stayed with her, he'd probably be married with two or three kids by now.

"Charlie!" He opened his eyes to find his Sherpa guide waving at him. "Come. Up here long enough. We start down."

"No. It gets in the way. I'm all right. I am. Don't worry. Just a few more minutes."

The guide studied him for a long moment, then nodded. "Few minutes. Stay up here for half hour already. We must go."

Had it been that long? Time seemed to be slipping through his fingers at an alarming rate. It seemed like just days ago that he'd graduated college and now he was fast approaching thirty.

Charlie turned again, slowly, taking in more of the view. It was over. He was finally finished. He had the rest of his life in front of him and no plans for how he'd spend it. Why hadn't he thought of this sooner? What would he do with his time? There was always the "Second Seven," the second-highest peaks on each continent. But was he willing to invest another five years of his life?

"Charlie!"

The words echoed in his ears. But in the thin air, it didn't sound like Ang at all. It sounded sweet and soft, tantalizing. Funny how he still remembered her voice. There'd been so many other women since Eve, women he'd easily forgotten. Yet she was still there, indelibly imprinted into his brain.

Charlie stared down the route of their descent, his footprints still visible in the snow. He still had to get down the mountain and he knew the dangers. Fatigue, the weather, cerebral edema, snow blindness, avalanches, crevices that could swallow a man in the blink of an eye. A successful ascent didn't guarantee a safe descent. But what was waiting for him at the bottom? Would anyone really care that he'd made it up to the top and back again?

Did she even remember him? Did she think of him at all or had the passion they'd shared been replaced by the love she felt for…hell, what was his name? Dave? Dan? Odd that he couldn't remember. She'd married him, chosen security and dependability over uncertainty. He hadn't blamed her for making the safe choice. She deserved better than a man who warmed her bed every six months in between adventures.

"Charlie! Move. We head down."

"I'm thinking I might stay here," he said, sitting down in the snow.

"Get ass up!" Ang shouted, grabbing his arm and tugging. "I not leave you here. You walk down or I carry. Kill us both."

"Who's waiting for you?" Charlie asked.

Ang reached for Charlie's oxygen bottle and turned up the flow, then held the mask over his face. "Breathe. Clear head."

"And she's all right with this? She doesn't mind that you tramp up and down Mount Everest."

"This my last trip. We have baby. I tell wife, no more. I save money from many climbs, we open laundry in Namche. We have happy life. Grow old together." He held out his arm and pointed to his watch, strapped over his sleeve. "See? We leave now. You move or I roll you down to base camp."

"Two years back, I love my girl. Another man love her, too. I make her see we have happy life together. All is well."

For an instant, Charlie's mind cleared. What was to stop him? Maybe that's what he needed to do. Go back and figure out if he had made the wrong choice that night five years ago. And if he had, try to fix it. Suddenly, he had a reason to get down the mountain. He'd go see Eve. He'd figure out why it was her face he'd seen.

"All right," Charlie said, clapping Ang's shoulder. "Let's get off this damn mountain." He snapped his oxygen mask back in place and pulled his goggles down over his eyes.

In a week's time, he could be back in Boulder, Colorado. Back where it all began. Then maybe he'd figure out what he was supposed to do with the rest of his life.

"Lonely guy at table seven. And he's a hottie!"

Eve Keller glanced over her shoulder at her best friend and business partner, Lily Winston, then shook her head. "In case you haven't heard, the Garden Gate is one of the best restaurants in Boulder according to a recent article in the Denver Post."

"Oh, yes," Lily teased. "But I hear the chef at the Garden Gate is turning into a bit of diva. Television appearances, interviews in foodie magazines, a new cookbook and a possible television series for the Food Channel. Her partner has been having trouble finding toques that fit her ever-expanding head. Of course, she can't be bothered with something as mundane as a handsome man."

"One of the reasons we've been successful is that we focus on outstanding food and impeccable service. Not hitting on the customers," Eve said.

"I'm not looking to date him," Lily said. "I'm perfectly happy with Will. I'm just looking to…look. God, he's gorgeous. You should go out there and ask him if he likes his curried carrot soup."

Eve groaned. Since her divorce three years ago, she hadn't put much effort into dating. In truth, she'd put more thought into becoming a NASA astronaut than she had searching for a new man. Not that she didn't have a perfectly valid excuse for living like a nun. Her restaurant was growing in popularity. She'd already published one vegetarian cookbook and was working on another. Add to that the seminars she taught at three different cooking schools on the West Coast and there wasn't much time for a social life. She was even in preliminary talks with an investment group about opening a new restaurant in Seattle and hosting a cable show on the Food Channel.

Men had simply drifted to the bottom of the list of important things on her agenda. After the mess that had been her marriage and the bigger mess that had been her divorce, Eve wasn't sure she ever wanted to allow a man into her life again.

"Just take a look," Lily said, pulling Eve away from the prep table. "You've been living in my guest room for three years. I see your social life first hand and it's pathetic. Last week you alphabetized the spices on my spice rack. The week before, you cleaned the grease trap on the kitchen sink. You need to get a life, Eve."

"I have a life. Here. In this restaurant."

"This isn't life. It's work." Lily gently took the knife from her hand and set it next to the red peppers Eve had been chopping. Then she reached up and snatched the colorful bandanna off Eve's head. "Go ahead," she said, ruffling Eve's short-cropped auburn hair. "Just wander on out there, smile at the customers, and ask him how his soup is." Lily shoved a basket of quick breads into her hand. "Offer him some three-grain nut loaf."

Eve knew she ought to spend more time in the dining room. All the best chefs interacted with their clientele. But life inside the confines of the kitchen was so much easier than life in the outside world. She peeked though the window of the swinging door, searching for the object of Lily's attention.

When her gaze finally found the lonely guy at table seven, her breath caught in her throat. "Oh, God," she muttered, turning away from the door.

"You don't think he's cute? " Lily asked. "Oh, good grief, Eve, if you're that picky you're never going to have sex again for the rest of your life."

Eve nodded. "Unfortunately, yes. In every sense of the word. I have seen him naked and trust me, the body matches the face. Utterly and unbelievably gorgeous." A shiver skittered down her spine at the memory. There'd been a time when she'd had that body in her bed, lying on her sofa, standing in front of his refrigerator looking for something to eat at three in the morning.

"But…I don't understand."

Eve took Lily's arm and led her over to the walk-in fridge, then pulled open the door. "Go ahead. I'm not going to spill my secrets unless we have complete privacy." They stepped inside and Eve closed the door behind her.

Lily rubbed her bare arms. "If this is going to be a long story, I'm going to need a jacket."

"Remember that night, after we got the good review in Food and Wine, and we drank those two bottles of Mendocino Monastery Reserve Cabernet? And I told you about that guy, the one right before I married Matt?"

"The 'one last fling' guy?" Lily asked. "That's him?"

Eve nodded. "Charlie Templeton."

"You dumped him for Matt?" Lily stared at her as if she'd just admitted to serving puppy fritters with kitten aioli to the customers. "Dweeby, whiny, needy Matt?"

"I didn't know he was like that when I married him. He seemed—dependable. It was only after the wedding I realized he was looking for a mother, not a wife. And Charlie was everything a girl is supposed to be afraid of. After a month of nonstop sex, he told me he was going to be gone for six months. At the time, I needed a man who'd be there for more than a bi-annual sexfest."

"Semi-annual," Lily corrected. "And now he's back."

"Five years later. Five years and not a word. No phone call, no postcard. Now can you understand my decision?"